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Author Topic: Correcting clock on non-networked GDC Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-09-2014 03:29 PM                     Bob Healey... ANy laptop can be temporarily connected to the Local projector switch so GDC can gain access. This eliminates the permanent connection issue you face. It need not be permanent. Only for powered up for their remote access, or yours if an issue arises. I have had projector manufacturers also remote in to look at a projector issue..  |  IP: Logged Steve Guttag We forgot the crackers Gromit!!! Posts: 12814 From: Annapolis, MD Registered: Dec 1999 posted 11-09-2014 04:11 PM                     Monte...if your clocks are drifting like crazy (Dolby or other)...then the clocks were not set right to begin with. If rebooting reset the clock properly, then the secure clock is probably not the problem since when a Dolby boots up...it first checks NTP...failing that it asks the mediablock (CAT862 or the <cough, cough> CAT745) and finally its own BIOS clock. As I've said before, the CAT745's "clock" is less precise than a sundial. It will easily drift minutes a year. But moving onto your statement on having the Dolby's set their clock via your GDC TMS system...absolutely they can. Note, the Dolby server will know if your GDC TMS has a real NTP source. So if your TMS server is really getting its reference from NTP, then the Dolby server is all to happy to use it. However, it is best to get both the secure clock (CAT862, CAT745 or DSP100) set as close as possible and then set the BIOS clock as close as possible first. When the DSS200 boots up, it will call out to the set NTP source (set in the configuration when it was installed) and perform an NTPDATE command and step the clock to whatever NTP is telling it. Starting with Dolby 4.7.0...NTP for Dolby became MUCH more reliable and it polls NTP much more often to keep it more reliable. 4.8.2. made further improvements to the NTP implementation in Dolby. I completely agree that getting an accurate clock should not be such a hard thing in this day and age when even a cheap watch can keep very good time without NTP as a reference. I think the designers presumed NTP so much with all of this networking business that the clocks were allowed to be rather sloppy. GDC started out by having its BIOS clock being the "secure clock"...anyone that knows computers knows that the BIOS clock is never all that accurate...but again, with an NTP source...big deal...GDC's clocks, with an NTP source in 7.8 and earlier were right on the tick. When DCI came about and 8.01...so went GDC's clock...it was forced to use the mediablock's clock. Now, those systems are typically 10-20 seconds off (perpetually). I believe it tries to reset itself at show start during the DCI check. You can try to tweak it via the RTC offset in the Admin Panel. Most seem to be completely unaware of it. This applies to the older SX-2001As...the 2000AR and 3000 function differently, clock wise...particularly the 3000 since there is no BIOS clock from a "server" to work with...it is all on the IMB. Honestly, I have not studied that clock system as much.  |  IP: Logged Bob Healey Film Handler Posts: 93 From: Milford, CT Registered: Sep 2001 posted 11-09-2014 11:52 PM                     Mark, this particular university is pretty strict about what it allows in/out of its firewalls, and on what sorts of connections. I don't know if team view would actually work get past the packet inspection on the firewall. Student groups can only get http traffic permitted on port 80 to wired hosts with static addresses. Staff members like me can also get https permitted. Anything else requires documentation that an academic need will not be fulfilled, or paying for a guest access account for a specific person (3-4 week process to setup).  |  IP: Logged Frank Cox Film God Posts: 2234 From: Melville Saskatchewan Canada Registered: Apr 2011 posted 11-10-2014 01:08 AM                        The IT department is there to serve the needs of the university. Not the other way around. Tell them that you require this access for the purpose of maintaining your digital cinema equipment. If they refuse, take it up with the university president or whoever is supposed to be in charge of the place. Active obstruction of a legitimate and necessary activity should not be permitted. I don't understand the attitude of some IT departments (and sometimes individual sys admins). Their role is to assist you and provide what what you need when you need it.  |  IP: Logged Randy Stankey Film God Posts: 6539 From: Erie, Pennsylvania Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-10-2014 01:39 AM                     I work for a place that has "institutional obsessive compulsive disorder" but, if I really need to do something, I can talk to a certain person who is in charge. He won't say yes nor will he say no. His answer is, "Just don't screw anything up." Point being, there is always a way.  |  IP: Logged Pete Naples Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1565 From: Dunfermline, Scotland Registered: Feb 2001 posted 11-10-2014 02:47 AM                     Frank, amen! University and Local Authority IT here are usually a total PITA. Generally we bypass them altogether by using a dedicated connection, it's a T&C of our maintenance and monitoring agreement.  |  IP: Logged Steve Guttag We forgot the crackers Gromit!!! Posts: 12814 From: Annapolis, MD Registered: Dec 1999 posted 11-10-2014 06:12 AM                     IT's motto..."If you are doing your job, we aren't doing ours." In such situations, I normally ask for their NTP clock's IP address. I don't need to go find my own. I'd be surprised if that was not available...sometimes, you need get no further than the gateway. There is definitely a territory thiefdom with many IT departments. After all, they are partly the security department. At the university level, they are in the breeding grounds for viruses and such. I can definitely understand their desire to lock things down. College age people can be rather clever and stupid at the same time. I never had such virus protection on my stuff as when I was in college. ANYTIME I put one of my floppy discs on a University computer...it came back with a virus on it. I had to keep that stuff separate.  |  IP: Logged Carsten Kurz Film God Posts: 4340 From: Cologne, NRW, Germany Registered: Aug 2009 posted 11-10-2014 08:09 AM                     In tough cases, I check if I have 3G reception somewhere on site, then simply use my iPhone HotSpot Feature for a short-term TeamViewer connection. Yes, there are some caves with no coverage, but one way or the other will usually work. - Carsten  |  IP: Logged Pete Naples Phenomenal Film Handler Posts: 1565 From: Dunfermline, Scotland Registered: Feb 2001 posted 11-10-2014 02:18 PM                     Carsten, I've a couple of places where installing a physical ADSL line was not possible due to the layers of red tape. One of them the IT guy was actually smug that he had 'won'. The smug grin was wiped off his face when he couldn't provide anything in their rulebook that said we couldn't use 3G. So, the workaround was to install a mobile broadband dongle to the USB port of a Draytek VPN enable router. They can use multiple WAN connections for fallback, including USB 3/4G. As far as the router is concerned WAN1 (ADSL) and WAN2 (Ethernet) have failed, so it looks to WAN3 (USB). Not the fastest nor most cost effective method, but needs must.  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-13-2014 10:22 AM                     Bob Healey... What Carsten says! Screw the IT Department! I have had to do the exact same thing at drive ins that have no internet and that works fine. Mark  |  IP: Logged David Buckley Jedi Master Film Handler Posts: 525 From: Oxford, N. Canterbury, New Zealand Registered: Aug 2004 posted 11-14-2014 05:58 AM                        I'm just wondering what sort of university doesn't have an NTP infrastructure.  |  IP: Logged Steve Guttag We forgot the crackers Gromit!!! Posts: 12814 From: Annapolis, MD Registered: Dec 1999 posted 11-14-2014 06:39 AM                     Exactly...Where I've had to be on IT's infrastructure...I just ask THEM for the NTP address...never had an issue getting that.  |  IP: Logged Carsten Kurz Film God Posts: 4340 From: Cologne, NRW, Germany Registered: Aug 2009 posted 11-14-2014 07:49 AM                     I think we were not talking about NTP, but remote access to fix it? Other than that - yes, even getting local NTP can be a problem if the IT considers the server unsecure. I know enough IT departments not granting ANY network access to machines they do not have under their own control. And they do not work or configure cinema servers. - Carsten  |  IP: Logged Mark Gulbrandsen Resident Trollmaster Posts: 16657 From: Music City Registered: Jun 99 posted 11-14-2014 10:44 AM                     Exactly. Hence the title of this thread....  |  IP: Logged Steve Guttag We forgot the crackers Gromit!!! Posts: 12814 From: Annapolis, MD Registered: Dec 1999 posted 11-14-2014 01:29 PM                     What I have come across this far are two extremes (when other ITs are involved)... 1) ANYTHING with an Ethernet jack is to be under their "control". And no, you are not likely to get an easy remote service to that...though it is certainly possible. 2) They want NONE of the Cinema stuff on their network and we merely need to find out own means of Internet. By far, the most common for us is to not have any interaction with other IT systems...after all, we are as leery of them as they are of us!  |  IP: Logged

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